Future Girl
by Catalina H
Summary: She was a mirror image of Piper, just younger. Except for the eyes. She had Leo's eyes. So why is eighteen year old Melinda Halliwell in the past, dying on the attic floor from a bleeding hole in her stomach? And how does their neurotic whitelighter from the future Chris know her? -Chris Revelation Fic-
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I know it's been a while since I've published. No, I have not abandoned my other stories. I've just been reading a lot of Chris revelation fics lately and this popped into my head and I had to get it out.**

**It's set after Piper is pregnant, but she doesn't know, and no one knows who Chris is. And Leo hasn't gone Up There full time.**

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Chapter 1 – Piper's Mirror

The sisters were in the attic researching the next demon Chris wanted them to go after. He may be neurotic and drive them crazy with his constant demon hunts, but they at least all agreed that he was here to save Wyatt, and that earned him at least some trust with them.

Though Piper was starting to regret agreeing to this demon hunt. Just the description in the Book was making her stomach churn. Then again that had been happening a lot this week. She hoped she wasn't coming down with something.

Paige was brewing a potion, Phoebe was writing a spell, and Piper was looking through the Book when they heard a loud thud and looked up to see a young woman land on the floor.

"Whoa! Who are you?" was Piper's immediate response, raising her hands in preparation for a fight.

"Oh my God," Phoebe muttered when the girl groaned. That's when they all noticed she was bleeding from a hole in her stomach. It looked as if she'd been stabbed by something the size of a baseball.

The sisters went over to the girl, still cautious but concerned. That's when Paige noticed.

"Uh…guys?" Her sisters looked at her, noting the shock on her face. "Does she look familiar?"

Her sisters looked back at the girl, taking in her features for the first time.

"She looks just like Piper," Phoebe said, voicing the thought on all their minds.

The girl groaned again, and the sisters looked back at her. She had opened her eyes slightly. That's when they heard her whisper, "Chris…"

"'Chris'?" Piper repeated in surprise as blue and white orbs filled the room, forming their whitelighter from the future.

The sisters were all gaping at him, but his eyes were on the girl on the floor.

"Oh my God," he breathed, dropping to his knees beside her. "Mel? Mel can you hear me? It's Chris," he said in a firm, but caring manner. Something so unusual for the sisters to witness that they were frozen, watching. That's when Chris noticed the wound the blood was coming from, and his tone turned urgent. "Call Leo," he told the sisters, before turning back to the girl. "Com on Mel, wake up!" Noticing the sisters were still frozen in shock, Chris yelled, in a commanding tone, "CALL LEO!"

The urgency in his voice and the fear in Chris's eyes, and the girl's appearance, prompted Phoebe to act. "Leo!"

Slowly, orbs formed the Elder, who took in the situation, and then looked at the sisters in questioning.

"Heal!" Phoebe burst, pointing to the girl.

Leo noticed Piper and Paige giving him the look of 'well, go on', and Chris's pleading look, which surprised Leo enough that he paused long enough to notice the girl's appearance.

"Well heal her Leo!" Piper exclaimed, noticing Leo pause.

Leo knelt down and held his hands over her stomach. The familiar golden glow covered the wound.

"What's taking so long?" Paige asked, after a few moments and the girl still had not woken up.

"I don't know," Leo muttered.

Chris was silent, staring at the girl with a look none of the Charmed Ones nor Leo had ever seen on him before.

With a gasp the girl finally woke up, startling everyone else in the room. Leo and Chris had both jerked back in their surprise, but then Chris noticed the girl open her eyes and start looking around.

"Oh thank God," Chris whispered, leaning down and engulfing the girl in his arms. "Don't you ever scare me like that again," he whispered.

Leo had stood up and moved next to Piper. All four of them were watching with keen interest. Especially curious as to how Chris knew a girl that looked just like Piper.

The girl coughed, "I missed you too Chris, but I kinda need to breathe at some point."

Chris let out a small laugh, but released her and helped her stand up.

"Who are you?" Paige blurted out. Her sisters and ex-brother-in-law gave her an incredulous look. "What? It's obvious she's okay now after Leo healed her. Now I wanna know who she is, why she looks exactly like Piper, and how future boy over here knows her!"

The girl looked at Chris. "'Future boy'?"

"Don't," Chris warned, seeing she was fighting the urge to laugh.

She smiled, but then turned back to the other people in the room. "Well, to answer your first two questions, I think that's kinda obvious, don't you?" she retorted. "But my name is Melinda by the way."

"You're Piper's daughter," Phoebe stated. Melinda nodded.

"Leo and I get back together?" Piper asked. The girl did look exactly like her, except with Leo's eyes.

Melinda shrugged. "You got three years to figure that out."

"You still haven't told us how you know Chris," Paige pointed out.

Chris and Melinda looked at each other. "How much do they know about the future?" she asked him. He shook his head in reply, and she had her answer. "Long story," Melinda told her family.

"So why are you here now?" Leo asked, finally getting over his shock that he and Piper have a daughter in the future. "I mean, why didn't you come back to warn us about Wyatt instead of Chris? Why now?"

Melinda sighed. "_That_ is between me and Chris."

"Excuse me?" Piper said, half-glaring at her future daughter. One for her tone toward Leo, two for her basically telling them Chris has more of a say in their future than they do. Phoebe and Paige looked at each other, both seeing Piper's temper flaring. "First of all, I'm your mother, and Wyatt is my son. Whatever concerns him concerns us, his family."

Chris cast a curious glance between Piper and Melinda, knowing what was about to happen, he could read Melinda's body language.

"First of all," Melinda started in the same tone as the past version of her mother, scaring everyone in the room except Chris, who was used to it. "_You_ are not my mother, not yet. Second of all, yes, Wyatt is your son and what happens to him does concern you all. But since none of you have a clue about what happens in the future, when it comes to the future it's up to me and Chris, who _are_ from the future."

"Mel…" Chris said in caution.

Piper looked furious, and ready to blow a gasket at having been talked to like that, especially by her daughter, whether she was from the future or not. Her sisters and Leo were all nervous and in awe of the fact that Piper's future daughter was just like her in more ways than just her looks.

Seeing everyone's faces and that Melinda was about to say something else, Chris grabbed her arm and orbed.

"Hey!" everyone in the room yelled.

"Chris!" Piper screeched. "You two get your asses back right now, I'm not through with you!"

-On the Golden Gate Bridge-

Melinda yanked her arm away from Chris as soon as they had finished orbing.

"Look, I know you're pissed, but I wasn't going to let you and Piper get into a screaming match," Chris explained. "Especially not before you and I talk about what they do and don't know, and what you're doing here."

Melinda sighed, looking at Chris. Chris saw the despair in her eyes. Then suddenly she threw her arms around Chris and squeezed tight. Chris returned the hug full force.

"I missed you," she whispered.

Chris sighed. "I missed you too."

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**A/N: Hope you liked it. I know it's not much, but I wanted to end it there, and don't worry, this was just an introduction. Things will get more interesting. I'm already working on the next chapter, so depending on how long it takes me to write and get to a computer to upload, it'll probably be a couple days before the next one's up. As always reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews! Luckily I had most of this chapter written last night and had time at work to finish so I was able to update quickly. As for reviews:**

**shezz05- thank you, and yes, you are correct. Mel will probably cause trouble for Chris, but she's his little sister, it's her job. :)**

**joy- I'm not sure how many chapters there will be, but safe to say at least a few more.**

**doremishine itsuko- yes, I agree...Chris is better :)**

**Everyone else, thank you and I hope you all continue to enjoy the story!**

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Chapter 2 – More Questions

"Nothing!" Paige exclaimed, frustrated. She had been trying to scry for Chris and Melinda, with no success.

"Where could they be?"

Phoebe looked over at Piper. Though at first furious, after an hour and no word from either their whitelighter or her future daughter, and neither scrying nor Leo's sensing had found them, Piper had started to worry. She had been pacing the attic for twenty minutes.

"I'm sure they're fine sweetie," Phoebe assured her sister.

"Yeah, they're probably just blocking us somehow," Paige added.

"Why?" Piper exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Why does she seem to care more about Chris than her own family?"

Phoebe sighed as Piper dejectedly plopped down on the couch. "Sweetie, you have to remember, they're from the same time, same place. And they obviously know each other really well."

"And no offense Piper," Paige started sympathetically. "But she's right, we're not gonna know her for another, what three years? We're not the people she grew up with, not yet."

Piper let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah, I know. I just feel bad for yelling at her."

"You have been a little off lately," Paige noted with concern.

"Yeah," Phoebe agreed, just as concerned. "Everything okay?"

Waving her hand dismissively, Piper said, "I'm fine. Probably just a bug or something."

"I can heal you if you want," Leo, who until this moment had been unusually quiet, offered.

Piper smiled, "Thanks, but I'm fine."

The sound of orbs made them all look up to see Chris and Melinda forming in front of them.

"You're back," Paige announced cheerfully.

The two young adults smiled slightly, but still seemed standoffish nonetheless.

"I'm sorry I yelled earlier," Piper told Melinda quietly. Standing, she explained, "I guess I just go a little crazy when it comes to my kids."

Melinda gave her a small, but genuine smile. "I know."

Piper smiled back.

"So how _do_ you two know each other?" Phoebe asked.

Chris and Melinda looked at each other, nodding in their agreement of how to handle this

"Chris is my best friend," Melinda told them. "I've known him my whole life."

The sisters nodded, taking in this knowledge. It made sense. It explained how Chris knew so much about them and seemed to know the manor like the back of his hand.

Leo looked at Chris however. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Chris muttered, in both confusion and disbelief. He hadn't expected that.

"It seems I may have misjudged you," Leo elaborated apologetically.

"You always have," Melinda said, with an edge to her voice only Chris understood.

Leo looked down at her comment. The sisters could tell he felt bad. So could Chris and Melinda, but they weren't nearly as sympathetic, even though they knew he wasn't _their_ Leo.

"What took you guys so long?" Piper questioned, changing the subject for Leo's sake, but also because she wanted to know why her future daughter that she'd just met and Chris had been gone for over an hour. She had been more worried than she cared to admit, about both of them. Something about the way Chris had acted when Melinda first showed up, before they'd known who she was, reminded Piper how young Chris still was, and it triggered her maternal instincts toward their whitelighter from the future, much like when he'd been shot with the darklighter arrow by the demon who'd trapped them in alternate realities based on their desires.

"We had a lot to discuss," Chris answered.

"Hopefully you're going to be cluing us in," Phoebe commented. She really hoped they would be getting some answers.

"Like why you were bleeding to death when you got here," Paige added bluntly to Melinda.

"Yes," Piper agreed wholeheartedly.

Melinda rolled her eyes. "It was nothing," she told them nonchalantly, then added to Leo, "Thanks for healing me by the way."

"Anytime," Leo replied sincerely. Melinda stiffened as she took a breath of acknowledgement, but the only one who noticed was Chris.

"'Nothing'?" Piper repeated incredulously. "Almost dying is not nothing young lady!"

"It is when most people are _actually_ dying!" Melinda yelled back, her tone surprising everyone in the room, including Chris, into frozen silence. Taking a deep breath, Melinda ran a hand through her hair. Turning back to the sisters and Leo, she said in a much calmer and almost whisper voice, "Sorry. It's just…Chris has already told you Wyatt is the evil he came back to stop. He's the most powerful being in the world, you can't honestly think him taking over the world _doesn't_ include killing anything and _anyone_ that gets in his way."

"Are you saying _Wyatt_ did that to you?" Paige asked, aghast.

Piper and Leo's eyes were wide at the thought. Phoebe got the feeling from both Chris and Melinda, even if she couldn't get a read on them, that there was a lot, much worse, that they _weren't_ sharing.

"If Wyatt had wanted to kill me, I'd be dead," Melinda scoffed. "Trust me, he's had plenty of chances."

"So, who –" Leo started, but Melinda cut him off.

"Don't worry about it," she told them all firmly. "It doesn't matter anymore. Besides, they're dead." Something in the way she'd added the last part made Phoebe think there was more to it, but the look Chris was giving Melinda told her she probably didn't want to know.

"Okay," Piper started, moving on to the next big question. "You still haven't told us why you're here now exactly?"

Melinda sighed and looked at Chris. He had been in the past longer and had more experience dealing with this version of them. She'd been here for less than three hours and she was going nuts, how Chris had managed this long she didn't know, but she was hoping he'd clue her in, and soon.

"Time travel is complicated, we can't say too much," Chris began, then seeing the sisters roll their eyes at what they assumed to be another 'future consequences' speech, quickly added, "Long story short, she's here to help me."

"You're staying?" Piper asked hopefully. That had caught their attention.

Melinda nodded slowly. Piper smiled at her future daughter, who slowly and hesitantly returned it. Paige and Phoebe smiled too, they wanted to get to know their niece after all.

"We can help fix up the spare room –" Paige started, but Melinda waved her hands quickly.

"Whoa, whoa, who said anything about me staying in the manor?" Melinda questioned. "I'm staying at P3 with Chris," she told them, easing the blow as much as she could.

"What?" Leo burst in confusion.

"But _this_ is your home!" Piper exclaimed.

Melinda rolled her eyes and looked to Chris for support, but he just shrugged. He'd tried to warn her they would react this way. Though neither had prepared themselves for what came out of Paige's mouth next.

"You two aren't…you know. Are you?"

"EW! NO!" Chris and Melinda exclaimed at the same time, both looking absolutely mortified at the thought.

"That's disgusting!" Melinda told her future aunt.

"We're like siblings, that's just wrong," Chris added in the same tone.

Biting back a smile, Phoebe commented, "Well at least there's one thing you don't have to worry about Piper." Piper rolled her eyes at her sister, much the same as Melinda had done to her earlier. "How old are you anyway?" Phoebe asked Melinda, bringing up the question they had been wondering about while Chris and Melinda were still gone.

"Eighteen," Melinda answered simply.

"You're just a kid," Piper said sadly.

"Nobody's a kid in the future," was Melinda's reply. The others saw the dark fare away look in both her and Chris's eyes.

"The future's really that bad?" Phoebe asked quietly. Chris and Melinda nodded confirmation.

"Where are we?" Paige asked bluntly.

"Yeah, why aren't we the ones dealing with all this?" Piper added, not believing for a second that she or her sisters would allow one of their kids to be the one fighting the battles, especially one still in their teens.

Chris and Melinda looked at each other. The sisters and Leo caught the wariness in their eyes.

"Oh," Piper breathed, reading their looks and knowing what it meant.

"That sucks," Paige stated bluntly, looking down slightly as she tried to comprehend the fact that apparently she and her sisters die young.

Phoebe didn't say anything, just cast a sad, apologetic look at heir whitelighter and her future niece.

"Where am I?" Leo asked, believing that surely he would be there to help his daughter.

Both Chris and Melinda's body language changed at that question. Granted the sisters knew Chris and Leo were anything but close, but they didn't understand Melinda reacting the same way.

"Look, enough future talk," Melinda stated in the same tone Piper had that clearly said 'drop it and move on'.

"Have you gotten any further with the demon?" Chris asked, all business once again.

The Charmed Ones sighed in frustration. Once again they were getting more questions than answers about the future, and being sent on yet another demon hunt. But in their minds, if it saved Wyatt from turning evil then they would deal with the seemingly never ending demon hunts.

000

Piper smiled as she watched Wyatt play with his food. '_How can someone so sweet and so innocent turn out so evil?_' she thought to herself.

"Aw, hi Wyatt," Phoebe cooed when she came into the kitchen and saw her nephew.

"Get something to eat, there's plenty," Piper told her.

"Mm, smells good," Phoebe commented, then sighed knowingly, "Still hoping she'll show up for a meal?"

Piper nodded sadly. It had been two days since Melinda had shown up from the future, and after that first morning they had barely seen her. Aside from demon hunting or dropping by to discuss possible threats, the Charmed Ones hadn't seen Melinda or their whitelighter. Logically Piper knew they were from the same time and it had been a while since they'd seen each other so they were probably catching up and talking about 'future stuff', stuff they apparently couldn't talk about with the sisters. But Piper still got the feeling she was being avoided for some reason or another, and she wanted to know why.

"Do you think I'm a bad mother?" Piper asked abruptly.

"What?" Phoebe replied in disbelief. "Piper that's crazy! You're a great mom!" she assured her older sister.

"But I must've done _something_ with the way she's been avoiding me," Piper reasoned.

"Oh sweetie," Phoebe sighed, sitting down by Piper. "I'm sure it's probably nothing you did. It's probably just weird for her to be here, that's all."

"Yeah…I guess," Piper mumbled.

Phoebe smiled sadly, then noticed Piper's untouched plate of food. "Have you eaten anything this morning Piper?" she asked with concern.

Piper shook her head. "No. I was going to, but then I felt like I was about to lose whatever I had in my stomach so I decided against it," she answered calmly, acting like it wasn't something for Phoebe to worry about.

"You sure you're okay? You've been getting sick a lot lately," Phoebe noted, worry still evident in her voice.

"It's probably just a bug," Piper waved dismissively.

Phoebe opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by the sound of orbs. They looked up to see Chris and Melinda.

"Hey," Piper greeted cheerfully.

"Hey," they replied casually. But then Chris saw Phoebe's expression.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Piper's sick," Phoebe told the two.

Piper rolled her eyes. "I'm fine," she objected. "I'm just feeling a little queasy lately. It's nothing."

Chris and Melinda glanced at each other, but thankfully neither Piper nor Phoebe noticed the glint of laughter playing in Melinda's eyes.

"Don't worry Phoebe, if she weren't alright I wouldn't be here, now would I?" Melinda tried to assure the past version of her aunt, knowing Phoebe was almost as bad as Piper in the worrying department.

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "That doesn't mean she's not sick," she retorted.

"Anyway," Chris started, changing the subject before anything else got said that would tell the sisters that he and Melinda knew why Piper had been off lately. Little did either of them know that Piper had already suspected, but when Melinda had showed up and said she wasn't born for another three years Piper had dismissed the idea. "We have another lead on who might turn Wyatt," Chris informed Piper and Phoebe.

"No," Piper stated firmly. Seeing Chris was about to argue, she added not until you two sit down and eat something first." When they opened their mouths again, Piper said firmly, "No arguing. We're not demon hunting until I know you two have eaten a solid meal."

Piper's tone left no room for argument. Chris and Melinda both knew they wouldn't win this one, so they nodded and mumbled, "Yes ma'am." Phoebe smiled at the interaction.

000

"Did he have fun?" Piper whispered as she walked into the nursery, where Leo was putting Wyatt in his crib.

Leo looked back at her and smiled, "Yeah, he enjoyed all the clouds," he whispered back. He had taken Wyatt Up There for the day so that the sisters could help Chris and Melinda with the demon hunting.

Piper smiled back at her son as she leaned over the crib to tuck him in. As she and Leo were walking out of the room she looked at him and told him seriously, "You're a good dad Leo."

Leo looked down, smiling sadly. Then he looked back up and told her just as seriously, "You're a better mom."

Piper forced a smile. They were both feeling like inadequate parents. First they'd found out their son will turn evil and take over the world, then their future daughter shows up and seems to want nothing to do with either of them.

000

Shutting her bedroom door behind her, Piper sighed heavily and went over to her dresser. She pulled out a brown paper bag, and took a deep breath as she took out the contents.

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**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. The next update probably won't be as quick with work and class and now getting sick, but I'll try to have it up within the next few days. As always reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Yay! I was able to update quickly. This is a shorter chapter, but I think you'll see why once you read it. And thank you all for the reviews! **

**BekaRoo- don't worry, she'll find out soon enough :)**

**robbielee2- she is the way she is for a reason, remember she is from a future where her older brother terrorizes people**

**November27- yes, I am continuing my other stories. I just haven't had a lot of time, and some of them are saved in a different format I'm having trouble opening right now so that's not helping**

**Everyone else, thank you for your reviews and I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!**

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Chapter 3 – The Truth

Chris and Melinda orbed into the attic, mindful to be quiet since it was early and they didn't want to wake the sisters or baby Wyatt. Melinda went over to the Book, and Chris began gathering potion ingredients.

"Do you think this is a long shot?" Melinda asked bluntly. Chris glanced over at her and saw the sadness in her eyes as she flipped through the Book.

"I hope not," he answered truthfully in a quiet voice. They both knew how hard this was going to be, but Melinda also knew how hard it would be on Chris if they couldn't save Wyatt and had to resort to stopping him. It would be hard for her too, but Chris had always been closer to Wyatt than she had so he would take it harder.

"What if we can't find out who turns him in time?" Melinda questioned, voicing the unspoken.

Chris gave her a sharp look. "Don't," he warned in a quiet but final tone. "Don't go there Mel."

Melinda sighed. She knew they needed to talk about it, but she saw the look Chris was giving her and knew this wasn't the time to push the subject. "Okay," she relented with a nod, and the two went back to the tasks at hand.

The sound of footsteps made them both look up quickly to see Piper entering the attic. She had on her 'down to business, no messing around' face on.

"We didn't mean to wake you," Melinda apologized.

Piper waved her hand nonchalantly. "You didn't. I was actually waiting for you guys to show up," she replied lightly.

"Everything okay?" Chris asked, seeing the look in Piper's eyes.

"Yeah, I just need to talk to Melinda about something. You mind giving us a minute?" she requested politely.

Chris glanced at Melinda, who didn't seem to understand either. She was giving him the look of 'don't you dare leave me alone'. She knew Chris had a hard time saying no when it came to Piper, but Chris also knew that Melinda had to talk to her at some point. Besides, Piper was giving him the 'Please?' look, and he crumbled. "Sure," he told Piper. "I'll be downstairs."

Melinda half-glared at Chris as he orbed downstairs, but then looked back at Piper with an innocent look of questioning. "What's up?" she asked her future mother lightly.

Piper took a deep breath as she walked over in front of Melinda, the Book of Shadows the only thing between them. "What year are you born?" Piper asked, trying to make it seem like a normal conversation.

Melinda furrowed her brows. "Why?" she replied slowly in suspicion.

Piper sighed, then looked Melinda in the eyes and quietly said, "I'm pregnant." Melinda's face remained unchanged, and Piper took that as confirmation of her earlier suspicions. "It's not you, is it?" Piper said softly, more as a statement than a question, but she still looked at Melinda for an answer nonetheless. When her future daughter averted her eyes, Piper gently added, "Please…just tell me the truth. Is this baby you?"

Melinda took a deep breath and looked back at Piper. "No," she sighed in a whisper.

Now it was Piper's turn to breathe deeply. Melinda just bit her lip and kind of nodded uncomfortably.

"So," Piper began lightly. "Boy or girl?"

"I can't tell you that," Melinda replied in a tone that was almost apologetic.

Piper huffed and rolled her eyes. "How is you telling me whether my second child is a boy or girl going to change the future too much?" she retorted. "I'm going to find out in a few months anyway so you might as well tell me now."

"Fine, it's a boy," Melinda finally relented, throwing her hands up in the air in defeat. "Happy now?" she huffed, rolling her eyes.

Piper smiled. "Yes, actually," she agreed lightly, if only to see her daughter roll her eyes again. But then she turned serious and asked, "Does he..." she trailed off, but Melinda knew what she wanted to know.

"No," she told Piper. "He doesn't turn evil," Melinda assured her.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Piper smiled happily. "What's his name?"

"I can't tell you that," Melinda stated firmly.

Now it was Piper's turn to roll her eyes again.

000

"Piper?"

Snapping out of her thoughts, Piper looked over to see her two sisters looking very confused. It was then that Piper realized she'd been daydreaming.

"What's got you so happy all of a sudden?" Paige asked bluntly.

"Huh?"

"You've been smiling all morning sweetie," Phoebe pointed out.

Piper shook her head. "Just a good morning I guess," she shrugged. And it was true. Granted she'd been nervous when the test had been positive, but after talking to Melinda, she had started to get excited about being pregnant again. Not that she knew how she was going to tell Leo, but still, it was exciting minus the morning sickness.

"Melinda finally talk to you?" Phoebe guessed.

"Yeah," Piper answered. "Well, sort of," she amended.

"Still better than nothing," Paige noted. Piper nodded her agreement just as the sound of orbs filled the room.

"Hey," Chris and Melinda greeted.

"Not another demon hunt," Paige groaned.

"Paige," Piper chastised.

"What?" Paige retorted. "Come on Piper, you know I love Wyatt, but it's not even ten in the morning."

As Chris opened his mouth to object, Phoebe said, "Look at it this way Paige, we get it out of the way early, we can relax tonight."

"Ooh, good point," Paige conceded. Looking at their whitelighter and her future niece she asked, "So what demon is it?"

Chris and Melinda fought smirks as Piper and Phoebe outright laughed at Paige's response.

000

Piper and Paige were working on the vanquishing potion, while Phoebe worked on a spell. Chris and Melinda were looking through the Book.

"Demons," Paige yelled when four demons shimmered in and started throwing fireballs.

"Fireball," Paige said, orbing one of the fireballs back to its owner, who burst into flames.

Piper blew up one, while Melinda blew up another. Chris tked one into the wall and Phoebe threw the potion, causing him to burst into flames as well.

"Can't they leave us in peace for one day?" Piper grumbled.

None of them saw a fifth shimmer in until Chris was thrown forward when a fireball hit him in the back. Piper blew him up as well, while Melinda ran to Chris.

"Chris," she said urgently, noticing he wasn't moving. "Come on Chris, you gotta wake up." The sisters could hear the fear in her voice.

"Leo!" Phoebe called.

"Come on Chris, you promised me," Melinda whispered in panic. "I can't lose you too."

Orbs filled the room as Leo formed. Wordlessly, the worried sisters pointed to Chris and Leo knelt down across from Melinda and began healing. Piper noticed the tears forming in Melinda's eyes.

"Oh my God," she breathed. Her sisters looked at her in confusion.

Chris gasped as he woke up. Leo stood up as Melinda threw her arms around Chris in relief when he began to sit up.

Piper's eyes were wide. "Oh my God," she repeated as realization hit her.

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**A/N: You had to know I wasn't going to make it that simple. :) Don't worry, I've already started the next chapter. I should have it up either tomorrow night or the next day depending on how long I decide to make it. As always, reviews are appreciated.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Yes, I updated quickly. I may love to write cliffhangers, but as a reader too I try not to make you wait too long. Thank you all for all the reviews.**

**BekaRoo- that little bit of doubt is exactly why I ended it the way I did :)**

**Charrmed- yeah, Leo pissed me off then too. I still love him, but I gotta have a little Leo bashing, especially with the way he treated Chris in the beginning**

**the original bitch- interesting idea...but no, I have not decided whether future Wyatt will enter the mix or not yet**

**Peanut-4ever- thank you so much! reviews like yours are why I love sharing my work. as a writer it is truly fulfilling to know that people appreciate and like your stories. and don't worry, I am doing my best to make sure that updates don't take more than a day or two :)**

**Everyone else, thank you so much for your reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter! It's another shorter one, but I think you'll probably understand why.**

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Chapter 4 – The Revelation

Phoebe, Paige, and Leo were looking at Piper with curiosity mixed with concern written on their faces. Chris and Melinda, who was still holding onto Chris, seemed not to have noticed that Piper looked like she'd seen a ghost, in the traditional sense of the phrase.

"Oh my God," Piper said again in shock, placing her hands on her stomach. This time Chris and Melinda heard her, and looked just as confused as the others. "_Chris_ is the baby!"

Chris and Melinda froze. Leo furrowed his brows, seeming even more confused. Phoebe and Paige cast a quick surprised glance at each other and then back at Piper.

"You're pregnant?" Phoebe asked in both joy and shock.

"With _Chris_?" Paige added bluntly.

The color drained from Leo's face as he looked like he was about to pass out. He kept opening and closing his mouth like a fish, yet he couldn't seem to form any words.

Piper was still staring wide-eyed at the two from the future. "You two _explain_ yourselves. _Right now_," she told them in a tone that left no room for argument, and that they recognized as the 'we're in deep shit' voice.

Slowly, Chris and Melinda stood up, giving each other the 'what now?' look. Hesitantly they turned to face Piper.

Seeing they weren't going to say anything Piper asked Chris incredulously, "Why didn't you say anything?" Chris opened his mouth but when Piper added threateningly, "And don't you dare say 'future consequences' young man," he closed his mouth again.

"You're my son?" Leo breathed in quiet disbelief, looking at Chris, and for the first time realizing how much he resembled his mother, even in mannerisms.

Chris rolled his eyes and sighed in annoyance, and orbed out.

"Chris!" Piper called with a hint of sorrow.

Phoebe and Paige's mouths were open in disbelief. Leo looked lost and confused as he stared at his feet sadly.

Melinda saw the look of hurt in Piper's eyes, and gave her a slight shrug and small smile of apology before orbing out after her brother, leaving everyone in the room speechless.

-On the Golden Gate Bridge-

Chris was sitting on the edge, with his legs folded under him as he watched the traffic below. Melinda didn't say anything for a few moments. She'd heard the sniffle and seen Chris wipe his eyes when he heard her arrival.

"Chris?" Melinda asked gently as she slowly made her way over to him.

"Now I get why you were ready to kill me after I left you alone with Piper this morning," Chris tried to joke.

Melinda sighed as she took a seat next to her brother. "You remember her better than I do," she commented quietly. Chris looked over at his little sister and gave her a sad smile. "I think I get why you were always so close to her now," Melinda started, looking down at the traffic. "You're a lot like her."

At this Chris let out a laugh. "So are you Mel," he retorted. She looked at him and rolled her eyes. Chris sighed, "You really don't remember her that much, do you?"

"I was eleven Chris," Melinda stated with a downcast expression. "Besides," she added, "After Wyatt and everything…I just try not to think about before."

"Why not?" Chris asked in confusion. "That's why we're doing all this."

"Because it hurts Chris!" Melinda shot back.

Chris sighed. "I know," he agreed quietly, looking back down at the traffic. "That's why I was hoping they wouldn't find out who I am," he began softly. "It was hard enough before. But now…"

"How do you think I've felt?" Melinda questioned sharply, looking over at Chris.

He looked back at her. "I know," he said apologetically. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Melinda sighed. "So what do we do now?" she asked dejectedly.

Chris shook his head, wrapping an arm around his sister. "I don't know," he sighed.

-Back at the Manor-

"So let me get this straight, you're pregnant…with Chris, our neurotic whitelighter from the future?" Paige said in astonishment. Piper just kind of shrugged and nodded as she sat down on the sofa.

"Okay, explain," Phoebe commanded.

Piper rolled her eyes, but said, "You guys know I've been a little off lately…" Phoebe and Paige nodded as if to say 'go on'. "Well, I'd kinda thought I might be pregnant after the astral plane." Piper shot Leo a sympathetic look, but continued, "Then when Melinda showed up and said something about three years before her I figured I'd been wrong. But when all the symptoms were still there I decided to finally take the test."

"And you found out you were pregnant," Phoebe finished, sitting down.

Piper nodded. "I confronted Melinda about it, and she finally told me it wasn't her. I pushed a little more and she admitted it was a boy, but that's all she would say."

"So how did you know it was Chris?" Paige asked.

Shaking her head slightly, Piper half-mumbled, "I dunno. After he got hit, and Melinda's reaction…I guess everything just started coming together. How well he knows us, the house, the Book…and then Melinda…how close they are, and then it just hit me how much _alike_ they are." Piper let out a heavy sigh. "He looks and acts like me, and I never saw it until I saw him standing next to Melinda, who you all keep pointing out looks like my twin, except she's got Leo's eyes. So does Chris," she added softly, looking at Leo with a thoughtful smile.

Leo looked back at her with a sorrowful expression. "Chris is our son?" he repeated, looking for confirmation. Piper nodded with a small smile. Leo took a deep breath as he sat down. The sisters could tell it was a lot for him to take in.

"We were all rough on him Leo," Phoebe said, trying to comfort, and knowing that was probably what was weighing on his mind the most.

"Not like me," Leo objected darkly, mentally berating himself.

"You're not the one who kicked him out of his own house Leo," Piper pointed out. "I was the one that said I never wanted to see him again," she reminded him dejectedly.

"Yeah, but you guys," Paige started. "In case you haven't noticed, he seems to have moved past all that."

"She's right," Phoebe agreed.

"You didn't see the look he was giving me," Leo commented. Phoebe and Paige sighed. "And what about Melinda's comment the other day?"

"You can fix it," Piper told him firmly. "You can change that future."

Leo finally smiled back at Piper. "We're really going to have another son?" he asked for confirmation, but this time the sisters could see he was happy.

Piper smiled. "Yeah, we're having another little boy," she said happily, unshed tears in her eyes.

* * *

**A/N: :) Hope you all enjoyed that chapter! I'll try to have the next one up either tomorrow night or the next night, but I do have class all day so I don't know how much time I'll have to write. As always reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Sorry! I know it took a couple days for me to update. I actually had this chapter written last night, but at first I continued writing, and then I decided to split it up. So this chapter is shorter, but I hope you'll understand why. But don't worry, the next chapter's already a work in progress so I should be able to update quicker. Thank you all for your reviews!**

**Peanut-4ever - thank you! don't worry, there will be more mother/daughter moments for Piper and Mel, just not this chapter.**

**Charrmed - yes, Piper is one tough person. she's actually my favorite character next to Chris, which is probably why my stories tend to focus on one or both.**

**Everyone else, thank you so much for your reviews, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 5 – Mom

"Hey," Chris greeted quietly when he and Melinda walked into the attic. Only Phoebe and Paige were there, but that didn't make Chris any less nervous.

"Hey," Paige greeted cheerfully. "There's our future _nephew_." Chris rolled his eyes at Paige's sarcastic and pointed comment.

Phoebe chose to ignore her sister and went over to Chris. "Come here sweetie," she said, holding her arms out and pulling him into a hug. Though at first hesitant, Chris gave in to his aunt's comforting embrace.

Melinda smiled. Whether he admitted it or not, she knew how much he needed that, and was glad Phoebe did too. Then again Phoebe was an empath too, even if Chris had taken a blocking potion. Phoebe was still good at reading people even without her powers, which was what made her a good empath, and why her advice column was so successful.

"Aw, my turn," Paige teased as she came over when Phoebe released Chris.

Chris smiled at her sense of humor, and gave into her hug as well. Phoebe wrapped her arm around Melinda, and the two shared a knowing smile.

"So how come you never told us you're our nephew?" Paige questioned lightly after she released Chris.

"It's complicated," Chris shrugged soberly.

Phoebe gave a smile of understanding, while Paige quipped, "Well, at least you didn't give us the 'future consequences' speech," using air quotes around 'future consequences'.

Melinda smirked, while Chris gave Paige a sarcastic smile. "Funny," he stated sardonically.

Paige smirked, giving a slight shrug.

Turning serious, Chris asked warily, "So where's Piper?"

"She's downstairs in her room," Phoebe informed him softly.

Chris nodded with a sigh, sharing a look with Melinda before heading downstairs.

Phoebe and Paige watched Chris go before sharing a smile with Melinda.

"Come on, we want some time to get to know our niece," Phoebe said lightly, leading Melinda over to the couch.

-Downstairs-

Knock Knock

Piper looked up to see Chris standing at her bedroom door hesitantly. "Hey," she smiled slowly. "Come on in."

Chris cautiously edged his way inside.

"I'm glad you came by," Piper told him gently.

"Sorry I just kinda took off earlier," he apologized.

Piper smiled understandingly. "It's okay." Chris raised his eyebrows. Piper let out a sigh of concession. "Okay, it's not," she amended truthfully. "But I understand why you did." Chris averted his eyes down. "I'm sorry Chris."

Chris looked up sharply. "What? Why?" he asked in confusion.

"For whatever made you think you couldn't tell us who you are," Piper clarified, standing to face her grown son. "And for giving you such a hard time," she added softly. "I know you were only trying to save your family."

Chris shifted on his feet. "It's okay," he told her quietly. "I knew how you guys would react. I never intended for you to find out who I was," he said honestly.

Piper let her shoulders sag in subtle disappointment. "Why not? Why didn't you want us to know you're my son?" Piper questioned with honest curiosity. Chris looked away, and Piper knew she wasn't going to get an answer. "For what it's worth," she started gently, reaching out to turn his face so she could look him in the eyes. "I'm proud of you."

He held eye contact for a few moments before finally letting a smile start to form. "Thanks Mom," Chris whispered.

Smiling brightly, Piper said, "Come here," and pulled him into a tight hug.

* * *

**A/N: I know it's short, but I just couldn't add in the rest. I wanted this one to be a Piper/Chris mother/son moment. Don't worry, the next one should be up tomorrow night though, I'm gonna try to not make you wait too long for it. :) As always, reviews are greatly appreciated.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I promised I'd update quick, and here it is! Thank you all for your reviews!**

**Charrmed - I gotta make Leo suffer a little... :) and yeah, poor Chris now that his mom knows**

**Peanut-4ever - that's what I was going for! I was trying to make it as sweet as in Hyde School Reunion, so I'm glad it reminded you of that scene. as for how I do it...I guess I'm just really good with being able to put myself in other people's shoes, probably why I wanna study psychology... lol. but seriously, when I'm writing I see it all in my head like I'm watching an episode, it has to feel right, like it could really happen before I'll actually put it in a story.**

**Everyone else, thank you so much for reviewing, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 6 – The Theory

"What if we're looking at this all wrong?" Melinda asked suddenly, pausing in her pacing to look at Chris.

Chris looked up from the Book. "What do you mean?" he questioned in curiosity.

"What I mean is, what if it's not a demon who turns Wyatt?" she suggested pensively.

Crossing his arms, with a concentrated expression on his face, "It's a theory," he started slowly. "But, other than demons, who would want to turn Wyatt evil?"

Melinda shrugged. "Like you said, it's a theory," she pointed out. "I just brought it up because we've been looking at every possible demon, but it hasn't gotten us anywhere yet. Maybe it's time to start looking at other possibilities." Chris nodded.

"What are you guys talking about?" Piper asked when she came up to the attic.

"Mel brought up a good point," Chris started.

"What if it's not a demon that turns Wyatt?" Melinda informed Piper.

"We've gone after a lot of demons, but none of them have panned out," Chris explained.

"Maybe it's time to look at another angle," Melinda finished.

Taking a deep breath, Piper nodded. "Okay…" she agreed quietly. It was one thing when it was a demon turning Wyatt, it's another to think about it being someone else, possibly someone they know. "It's worth a shot."

Chris and Melinda looked at each other and started brainstorming.

"Okay, so demons aside, let's start with the other magical beings we know," Chris began.

"Ones that may have a motive or some other reason for wanting to turn Wyatt," Melinda added.

"You know," Piper started, getting her future children's attention. "Leo may be able to help you guys out with that," she suggested cautiously, knowing they weren't exactly fans of their father.

The dark expressions that crossed Chris and Melinda's faces concerned Piper, especially since she didn't understand why it was there.

"No. We don't need him," Chris decided firmly.

"We can handle this without him," Melinda agreed in the same tone.

Piper let out a frustrated sigh. "You two are going to have to talk to him at some point," she pointed out with just as much determination as they had. "He's your father!" she added bluntly.

Chris looked away. Melinda averted her eyes and mumbled something under her breath, but Piper didn't catch it.

Sighing heavily, Piper finally said, "Fine, you don't want to talk to him, I get it. But will you at least try to work with him. To save Wyatt?" Chris and Melinda shared a look. "For me?" Piper added softly.

000

"There are a lot of magical beings, though I don't know why someone other than demons would want to turn Wyatt evil," Leo said thoughtfully after Chris and Melinda had explained their new theory.

Chris sighed, and Melinda retorted, "Their goal may not necessarily be to turn him evil. What if they're just after him for his power?" She couldn't keep the bite out of her tone.

"She's right," Chris agreed. "There are a lot of people out there that would love to get their hands on Wyatt's power," he pointed out. "And not just demons."

Leo let out a deep breath. It had been bad enough trying to talk things through with Chris before he'd found out he was his son. Now not only did Leo know Chris was his son, and hated him, but Leo felt double teamed by Chris and Melinda both seeming to be against him.

"I'm not saying I don't agree with you," Leo denied forcefully. "It's a good theory," he said honestly, but then added objectively, "I'm just trying to be realistic about who would want to come after Wyatt, and who would be brave enough to go up against the Charmed Ones to get to him."

"The Cleaners already tried to get rid of him once!" Chris argued.

"But they're neutral," Leo stated calmly, trying not to let Chris cause him to lose his temper. "They don't need the power, and they wouldn't be neutral if they turned Wyatt." Chris rolled his eyes, but couldn't argue with that.

"What about the Elders?" Melinda suggested simply. Leo looked over at her quickly, trying not to assume anything but wondering whether she'd just said it to get a rise from him. Knowing what Leo was thinking, and seeing Chris's questioning glance, Melinda elaborated, "Not all of them thought you should've married a witch. Which means there are probably at least a few who don't think you should've had a kid, let alone one as powerful as Wyatt." Chris nodded his agreement, and though Leo knew she was right, he couldn't believe that an Elder would hurt his son. Then Melinda added, "Besides, Wyatt could destroy them easily, and they know it."

Leo sighed heavily.

000

"Hey buddy," Leo whispered with a smile as he came into the nursery when Piper was putting Wyatt down.

Piper smiled as Wyatt giggled when Leo tickled him before pulling the cover over him. "He loves his dad," Piper said.

Leo smiled faintly. "At least someone does," he mumbled sadly.

"I take it your talk with Chris and Melinda didn't go well?" Piper guessed with a sigh.

Leo looked over at her and shook his head. "I tried Piper," he started, sounding a little desperate. "But I just don't know what to say that doesn't end up making things worse."

"You just have to keep trying," she told him firmly. Then with a smirk added, "They're nothing if not stubborn."

That got a smile and a half-laugh out of Leo. "Yeah," he agreed lightly. "Wonder where they get that from?" he said, giving Piper a pointed look.

Piper gave him a small smile. "From their dad," she answered easily. Leo smiled back.

Sighing, Leo started, "Do you know who their current lead is?"

"After everything we've been through, do you really believe the Elders _aren't_ capable of something like this?" Piper retorted, trying to keep the resentment out of her voice but not entirely succeeding.

Leo gave her a pointed look. "And you wonder where our kids get it from." Piper shot him a warning look. "Look, _I'm_ an Elder too Piper. I can't believe one of us would ever want to hurt Wyatt."

Piper rolled her eyes and asked seriously, "Not even if they thought Wyatt was a threat to their very existence?"

"Piper…" Leo started softly, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder, but she pushed him away.

"No Leo, I'm serious," she said sharply, tears starting to form in her eyes. "What if Chris and Melinda are right?"

000

Leo took a deep breath as he and Piper walked into the attic. Chris and Melinda looked up from the Book and a notebook, respectively, when they heard their parents come in. The two from the future shot Piper a curious glance, but it was Leo who spoke first.

"Okay," he started earnestly. "What can I do to help?"

Chris and Melinda shared an unreadable look before turning back to Leo.

* * *

**A/N: I hope you liked this chapter! Tomorrow should be a long day at work, so I should have plenty of time to work on the next chapter. Hopefully I'll be able to update tomorrow, if not it'll be the day after. As always reviews are greatly appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: You're going to love me! I have not one, but two chapters to upload tonight! Work was slow, and I got on a roll. :)**

**Peanut-4ever - wow...huge praise. thank you! yes, I am one of those people who is cautious. but don't worry, I'm 22 as well, and I still get really into fanfic. lol. I'm glad you like the story!**

**lizardmomma - no problem :) yeah, I wanted him to be open to it, but need a little push. and that's what Piper's there for :)**

**Thanks for the reviews! I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 7 – Elders and Emotions

"What?" Chris burst incredulously.

"Magic School has resources we can use," Leo tried to reason.

"And what about Gideon?" Chris pointed out almost venomously.

"Who's Gideon?" Melinda questioned, looking between her brother and father.

Leo sighed as Chris answered sarcastically, "Oh nobody. Just the _Elder_ that runs Magic School." Melinda's eyes shot to Leo.

"Gideon was my mentor. He fought for me and Piper to get married," Leo informed them. Then said fervently, "If there's anyone we can trust, it's him."

Chris and Melinda shared a look.

"I'll be the judge of that," Melinda told him simply. Then looking at her brother said, "Come on, let's go."

-At Magic School-

"Leo," Gideon greeted cheerfully in surprise. "What's going on?" he asked in curiosity when he saw Chris and Melinda.

"We need your help Gideon," Leo started. "We have another theory on who might be responsible for turning Wyatt evil."

Gideon raised his eyebrows slightly. "Really? Who do you think it could be?" he questioned with interest.

"An Elder," Chris said bluntly, while Melinda was watching for Gideon's reaction.

"'An Elder'?" Gideon repeated skeptically, narrowing his eyes slightly as he turned to Leo. "Leo, you can't be serious."

Taking a deep breath, Leo replied, "Actually, they bring up some valid points. It's worth looking into," Leo stated firmly.

Gideon sighed reluctantly, clearly not happy nor in agreement with Leo's stand. However, he did say, "You're welcome to use whatever you need to aid you in finding the truth."

"Thanks Gideon," Leo told him sincerely, knowing he and Gideon would be having a talk later about why he was suddenly suspicious of the other Elders, and not dedicating his time to them like he should. But Gideon knew Leo, and he knew family was the most important thing to him.

Nodding, Gideon added, "Let me know if I can help," before leaving the three alone in the library.

After Gideon was gone, Chris looked at Melinda.

"He's hiding something," she said quietly. "He got really nervous when you told him we thought it was an Elder that turns Wyatt."

"You're an empath," Leo realized.

Melinda looked over at him and nodded slowly. "And?"

Leo shook his head. "Nothing, I just hadn't realized, that's all," he explained lightly.

"It's not exactly something I like to advertise," Melinda retorted with a roll of her eyes.

000

"Gideon?" Phoebe repeated. "He's always been good to us. He's helped us out more than once. Why do you ask?"

Melinda shrugged. "He just gave off this weird vibe. I was just curious if you'd ever sensed anything…off?"

Phoebe sighed, trying to think. "Maybe a couple times," she answered honestly. "But he's an Elder, they're always hiding something." Melinda nodded. "What's wrong sweetie?" Phoebe asked softly.

"Something's missing," Melinda said quietly. "There's something I'm not seeing, I just don't know what."

"Do you think it's Gideon?" Phoebe questioned, trying to help. She could feel her niece's distress. "Do you think he's the one after Wyatt?"

Sighing heavily, Melinda replied frustrated, "I don't know. I felt _something_, but I don't know what it is."

"That's the trouble with being an empath," Phoebe started sympathetically. "We can feel what others are feeling, but we don't always know what it means."

Melinda looked at her with a distant expression. "Thanks Aunt Phoebe," she said with quiet sincerity.

Phoebe smiled. "Anytime sweetie," she promised. But then seeing Melinda's sadness before she turned away, Phoebe placed a hand on her shoulder and asked softly, "What's wrong?" Melinda shook her head and tried to walk away, but Phoebe turned her to face her. "Hey, you can talk to me," Phoebe assured her.

But Melinda just shook her head, and let out a hollow laugh. She gave Phoebe a sorrowful look, and Phoebe understood.

"Oh sweetie," Phoebe sighed, pulling her into a tight hug.

000

"Phoebe knows," Melinda told Chris as he orbed onto the bridge, turning to face him.

"Knows what?" he asked hesitantly, giving his sister the 'what did you do now?' look.

Melinda took a deep breath. "That she's not alive in our future," she answered slowly and warily.

Chris let out a sigh. "Mel…" he drawled in annoyance. "What were you thinking?"

"I wasn't!" Melinda snapped. That's when Chris noticed his usually under control little sister had her emotions bubbling just under the surface. Throwing her hands up in the air and beginning to pace, Melinda explained, "I went to ask for her help trying to figure out what I sensed from Gideon, and then she just started talking and…well, being Phoebe. And then I just realized how much I miss her, and how she wasn't around when I really started developing my empath power and how much help she would've been and –" She stopped. Stopped talking, stopped pacing. And that's when Chris saw the tears in her eyes. "I didn't say anything, but she saw my look and figured it out," she finished quietly.

Chris slowly walked over to Melinda and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in close.

"I just miss them so much," she cried into her brother's shirt.

"I know," Chris sighed, holding her tight and laying his head on top of hers. "Me too."

000

"Can I talk to you guys a sec?" Phoebe asked her sisters quietly when she came into the living room.

"What's wrong?" Paige asked softly, seeing Phoebe's face.

Phoebe swallowed, but looked at Piper. "Where's Leo?"

"He's upstairs putting Wyatt down," Piper answered slowly. "Why?"

Taking a deep breath to steel herself, Phoebe told them, "I think I know why Chris and Melinda have been so withdrawn around us."

Piper also took a deep breath, while Paige asked. "Why?"

"I think the Charmed Ones are dead in their future," Phoebe said as gently as she could.

Paige's mouth dropped open as her eyes widened in shock. Piper instinctively placed a protective hand over her stomach where baby Chris was growing inside of her.

"When?" Piper managed to force out in a whisper.

Phoebe shook her head sadly. "I don't know sweetie," she replied apologetically. "Melinda technically didn't even tell me we die. I could just read it on her face."

Piper turned her head and tried to keep the tears that were forming in her eyes from falling. Phoebe couldn't keep from feeling guilty for causing her sister this pain, but she'd felt Piper had a right to know what her kids were going through.

"Wonder how old they were when it happened," Paige mused quietly.

Shaking her head, Phoebe replied, "I don't know."

"Melinda's only eighteen," Piper said softly. "With the way they've hidden it it has to have been at least a few years." Phoebe and Paige shared a sad glance, and then turned back to Piper. "Losing your mother at a young age was something I had hoped wouldn't be a legacy our kids have to carry too," Piper practically whispered in despair.

"I know sweetie," Phoebe agreed. "Me too." Her and Paige moved to either side of Piper and wrapped their arms around her in a group hug as they all had tears running down their face.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed that chapter! Don't worry, the next one's already written and will be up as soon as I can type it up and upload it. :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: It was a longer chapter, so it took me longer to type. Thanks for the reviews on the last one! And a thanks to** the original bitch** who started my mind going on this part of the story.**** And just a little FYI, the italics are the future/memory. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 8 – Memories and Decisions

"Chris? Melinda?" Piper called.

Phoebe and Paige shuffled their feet as they waited for their nephew and niece. Leo just continued to stay silent. He hadn't really said much after the sisters informed him of their apparent young deaths. But he did agree that they should all be together when they confronted Chris and Melinda about it though.

When Chris and Melinda orbed in, they noticed the sisters' and Leo's sad expressions, and knew that Melinda had been right, Phoebe had figured it out.

"We know," Paige told them quietly.

Chris and Melinda glanced at each other.

"We're sorry," Phoebe added.

"This must've been really hard on you,' Piper started softly. "Seeing us alive and well when we've been dead in your future for years." Chris and Melinda couldn't look at their mother. "It's okay you know," Piper told them. "To talk about it."

Chris sighed. He shared a look with Melinda before finally looking at Piper. "We can't tell you," he said quietly in an apologetic and heartbroken voice. Piper sighed, she could tell how much this hurt her children.

"It's okay," Phoebe assured them. Paige and Piper nodded their agreement.

The sisters received two small smiles from the kids from the future.

"Why couldn't I save them?" Leo finally asked, distraught.

Chris took a deep breath and looked away, refusing to look at Leo.

"Because you weren't there," Melinda told him bluntly. Some of her anger leaked out when she added, "You didn't show up until it was too late."

Leo looked like he'd just been shot by a darklighter arrow. The sisters glanced at each other, but none of them knew what to say. Leo finally said, "I don't understand."

"Then why don't we show you."

Everyone turned around to find the source of the voice.

"Wyatt," Chris breathed, feeling Melinda tense beside him in preparation for a fight, while the sisters gasped.

"You're Wyatt?" Paige asked the tall man with shoulder length blonde hair who was wearing all black.

Wyatt smirked. "Now is that any way to greet your nephew Aunt Paige?"

Paige looked aghast. Phoebe was watching with wide eyes. Piper and Leo were in stunned silence.

"So what do you say, _Dad_?" Wyatt asked with a twisted smile. "Want to see why you couldn't save them?"

"What are you talking about?" Phoebe questioned in confusion.

"Showing you the memory of that day," Wyatt answered simply.

"Wyatt, _don't_," Melinda said firmly with a warning laced in her tone.

Wyatt looked at his little sister. "Don't worry Mel, we'll only watch the ending."

Before anyone could say anything else, the room began spinning and everything changed. When everything stopped, they were in the sunroom, but it was different.

"Where are we?" Piper asked in suspicion.

"The future," Chris answered dully, trying hard to suppress his emotions.

"The day you die to be exact," Wyatt clarified without emotion or caring. Chris glared at him, while the sisters and Leo began looking around in shock.

Melinda grabbed Chris's hand. She could feel their fear. He squeezed her hand, both of them thankful that he'd taken the empathy blocking potion so that she wouldn't have to feel his emotions too.

"So what's happening?" Phoebe finally asked. Wyatt pointed, and all eyes followed.

_A young Chris, he looked about fourteen, was hunched down over someone._

Paige and Phoebe gasped when they realized it was Piper.

_"No. No. No," Chris was whispering frantically. "DAD!" When no orbs appeared Chris yelled again, "DAD! LEO! Mom needs you!" His voice was breaking as tears fell. "LEO!" Panic was evident in his voice. So when no orbs showed, Chris tried again, "Aunt Paige! Mom's hurt!" No orbs again._

The sisters held onto each other while Leo looked devastated. Chris and Melinda both had tears running down their faces. Even Wyatt was refusing to watch, which at least gave the rest some hope that maybe he wasn't completely heartless.

_"Wyatt!"_

_ Blue orbs immediately filled the room, forming both a teenage Wyatt, who looked about sixteen, and a young Melinda, who couldn't have been more than ten or eleven._

_ "Mom!" Melinda yelled as Wyatt instantly began trying to heal her._

_ "Why isn't it working?" Chris asked impatiently after a few minutes._

_ Wyatt didn't say anything, just continued trying to heal._

_ But Melinda began to cry, "No...," and grabbed at her stomach as if she were in pain._

_ Chris glanced at his sister before looking back at Wyatt. "No…" he started quietly, praying for his brother to say he could heal her._

_ But Wyatt looked at both Chris and Melinda and shook his head slowly. Unshed tears were in his eyes as he told them heartbrokenly, "I can't heal her." They all knew what that meant so none of them spoke it out loud._

The sisters were crying hard now. Leo was in disbelief, wondering why he hadn't come when his son called. He too had tears running down his face.

_Suddenly Chris looked up with fear in his eyes. "Aunt Paige didn't answer either," he said in quiet panic._

_ Wyatt's eyes went wide and he orbed out._

_ Chris looked over at Melinda and saw she was on her knees, hunched over and crying silently. He made his way over to her and wrapped his arms around her._

_ A few minutes later Wyatt orbed back. He caught Chris's eyes and shook his head sadly._

_ "Aunt Phoebe?" Chris choked out. Again Wyatt shook his head._

_ Still holding onto Melinda, Chris felt her flinch. Wyatt saw this, and both boys heard their sister let out a moan of pain as she continued to be hunched over with tears overflowing._

_ "Mel?" Chris said worriedly as Wyatt dropped down on Melinda's other side._

The room swirled again. This time when it stopped they were in Piper's bedroom, but yet again it was different.

_Teenage Wyatt, looking the same as he did in the last memory, was standing by the dresser, looking at a picture of Piper with her three kids._

_ Chris came into the room slowly._

_ Wyatt looked at him and quietly asked, "Did it work?" Chris nodded. "Good," Wyatt nodded as well._

_ The sound of orbs made the boys look up to see Leo, looking the same as he always had, except dressed in Elder robes._

_ "I came as soon as I heard," Leo said immediately, apology written on his tear stained face._

_ "Why not when Chris kept calling you to heal her?" Wyatt shot back in anger._

_ Leo looked at Chris, who was glaring daggers at his father. "I'm so –" Leo started softly but Chris cut him off._

_ "Save it Leo," he said coldly._

_ Sagging his shoulders, Leo took a breath to steel himself before trying again to talk to them. "Where's Melinda?" he questioned quietly._

_ "Sleeping," Wyatt answered simply._

_ "I'd like to see her," Leo said calmly, starting to walk away when Chris stopped him._

_ "I gave her a sleeping potion," Chris informed him. "She'll be out for a while."_

_ "You did what?" Leo replied incredulously, staring at his youngest son in utter confusion._

_ "She got a new power," Wyatt said lightly. "Empathy." Leo looked at his oldest in surprise. "She was too overwhelmed with all of this, so we decided to help her get some rest," he informed his father simply._

_ Leo took a deep breath, and became calm and business-like. "She was given her power for a reason. It's not right to try to suppress it, she needs to learn to control it sooner rather than later," Leo said admonishingly._

_ "She's eleven!" Chris yelled in retort. "In case you missed the memo…" he continued seething. "Our mother and aunts are dead! She has enough to deal with on her own. She doesn't need to deal with everyone else's feelings too!"_

_ "Chris," Leo started to object._

_ "Just leave," Wyatt interrupted. Stunned, Leo turned to Wyatt. "Just get out of here. We don't need you. You're only making things worse."_

_ Leo was hurt. But after a sad glance at both of his sons, he orbed out._

The room spun again. Except this time when it stopped they were back in their attic. The sisters were all stunned. Their tears had finally run dry. Piper was holding her stomach protectively, and sharing a sad and helpless look with Leo, who was utterly crushed, mostly because of himself and his behavior in the future.

"That's when you became an empath?" Phoebe asked Melinda sorrowfully.

Melinda finished drying her eyes and nodded.

"It nearly killed her," Chris said bitterly. Leo looked down guiltily.

"Oh sweetie," Piper sighed, pulling her daughter into a warm embrace. She felt Melinda tense, but Piper wasn't letting go.

"I'm so sorry," Leo whispered with such sincerity even Chris was almost feeling bad for him.

"As you should be," Wyatt said emotionlessly.

After giving into the hug, Melinda finally pushed Piper away and turned to Wyatt. "Is this why you're here? To punish him?" she questioned harshly.

Wyatt's eyes turned dark. "I'm here to bring you back," he replied firmly. Then looking at Chris added, "_Both_ of you."

Chris shook his head, but it was Piper who said, "No! You're not taking them." The look in her eyes and the tone of her voice told her children she meant business.

Before anyone could say anything, orbs filled the room and Gideon appeared.

"Leo, good," he started in urgency. "I've been trying to find you. There's a great new power here. This might be what you've been searching for, the one who turns Wyatt."

Slow clapping caught Gideon's attention, and he turned and saw the full grown evil Wyatt standing there smirking at him.

"Little slow on the uptake," Chris commented sarcastically. "_That's_ Wyatt." Gideon's eyes widened.

Suddenly Melinda cringed, doubling over with the shear force of emotions that just hit her.

"Mel?" Chris asked with concern. The sisters and Leo looking worried as well. Gideon seemed confused.

But Melinda was looking at Wyatt, who looked back at her with an odd and confused expression. She finally stood, still staring at Wyatt, and said, "I'll go back with you."

"What?" Chris and the sisters and Leo blurted incredulously.

"But Chris stays," Melinda finished, still staring at Wyatt.

Wyatt took a deep breath, considering this.

"Mel, you can't be serious," Chris said in confusion and disbelief.

"Why should I let him stay?" Wyatt asked curiously.

"To prove your right," Melinda answered simply. "If he stays and he can't find whoever turns you, then you're right and we just wasted our time on something that didn't exist."

The sisters and Leo couldn't believe their ears. Chris was in stunned confusion.

Wyatt smirked. "Deal," he agreed.

"Mel!" Chris pleaded, grabbing her arm when she made to walk to Wyatt. "Don't do this," Chris whispered almost frantically. "You don't have to do this."

Melinda sighed, looking him in the eyes. "Yes, I do," she told Chris firmly. "Trust me," she said confidently. Chris opened his mouth to argue, but Melinda threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "It's Gideon," she whispered in his ear so quietly Chris almost didn't hear her.

Chris was stunned, and staring at her in bewilderment, long enough for her to walk over to Wyatt. They locked eyes for a minute, and then he waved his hand and a portal opened on the wall.

The sisters and Leo were speechless. Melinda looked back at them. She gave each of them a genuine and reassuring smile.

With one last meaningful look at Chris, Melinda turned back to Wyatt and nodded. The others watched helplessly as Wyatt and Melinda walked through the portal and it close behind them.

* * *

**A/N: The end! And actually no, that's not a joke. I may decide to add an epilogue or something, but as of now, this is the end of Future. Thanks to all who've read and enjoyed this story! And as always, reviews are greatly appreciated!**


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